About FMBC

Welcome Family and Friends!

We're delighted that you've taken an interest in First Missionary Baptist Church (FMBC), which has served the greater Winter Haven, Florida area for over 136 years. We are a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching church, striving to make Christ known … and reaching out to a dying world.

FMBC was organized in 1881 and 15 pastors have served the church in her rich history. Our current Pastor/Teacher, Reverend Clifton E. Dollison, and First Lady Valerie Dollison, have served the church since 1992. The God of Israel has enlarged our territory and His hands have guided us through the generations.

Thank you for considering our church community: we're excited at the prospect of meeting you face-to-face soon, in our Sunday worship service or Wednesday prayer, praise, and bible study. May God richly bless you!

Our Mission

Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church. We commit to keeping Him at the center of all our activities. After reminding us of His absolute authority in heaven and on earth in the Great Commission, Jesus provides clear instruction to go and make disciples, and to teach them to observe all things that He has commanded us to do (MT 28:18-20).

To that end, our church mission statement: “A Charge to Keep - A World to Reach" expresses our commitment to reach the lost and teach them

Our Vision

Our vision is to know Jesus Christ and to make Him known. We exalt Him as Savior, Sanctifier, and Coming King, and seek to fulfill His Great Commission by evangelizing and discipling His people, incorporating them into a Christ-centered community. We desire to build a congregation that continues to grow until we saturate our community with the message of Jesus Christ; a focused congregation that we equip for active involvement in missionary efforts throughout our community and the world. What does this vision look like in practice?

Core Values: Members embrace unity, share in church responsibilities, serve in ministries according to their spiritual gifts, and support the church’s testimony.

Discipleship: Members/covenant partners bring others into the fellowship.

Maturity through Christian Education: Members receive intense training from our educational council ministry to equip them and facilitate their ongoing spiritual development.

Ministry Service: Members model Christ’s love through community out-reach to help those who are suffering and need assistance.

Magnification: Members celebrate God’s presence in our collective worship, which is a wonderful opportunity to express our love and appreciation to the Lord for His blessings and to glorify His holy name.

CHURCH AFFILIATIONS

National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.

First So. Florida Missionary Baptist District Association

Progressive Missionary & Educational Baptist State Convention of Florida

Polk Ecumenical Action Council for Empowerment

(P.E.A.C.E.)

NAACP

Winter Haven Branch

the word of God. We serve Winter Haven and the surrounding communities through a family style of worship that encourages an interactive atmosphere and we are committed to a high level of participation in ministry by all who choose to unite with us.

We encourage each FMBC disciple to invest in others who do not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and to invite them to assemble with us in worship. It is our prayer and hope that all who unite with this local assembly will obey this essential mandate.